This application claims the priority benefit of Taiwan application serial no. 88201633, filed Feb. 1, 1999, the full disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a communication system for telephone. More particularly, the present invention relates to a communication system using infrared or radio wave as a medium for transmitting voice signal. The communication system also employs an earphone to transmit voice signal to the user""s ear and a microphone to collect voice output from the user so that hands-free, telephone communication is possible.
2. Description of Related Art
In today""s society, communication equipment is indispensable to our daily life. Through our telephone network, communication across great distances becomes possible and people around the world are pulled closer to each other than ever before. Nowadays, products for communication are developed at a fast pace. Besides being lightweight ad convenient to use, newer generations of communication products can be used almost anywhere from inside an office or a household to outdoor area such as the street or inside a car. Normally, wireless or cordless telephones are used within an office area or at home and mobile or cellular telephones are mainly used outdoors.
However, talking through a mobile or cellular telephone while driving a car is very dangerous. Statistics shows that many accidents occur when a driver is driving a car with one hand while holding a mobile or cellular telephone with the other. The reason is that talking over the telephone causes great distraction. Sufficient distractions may rob the driver""s concentration on the wheel and the road so that roadside accidents increase. Therefore, many countries are in the process of enacting laws forbidding drivers to talk over a handheld telephone while driving. One solution is to use hands-free headset that contains an earphone and a microphone. However, using a headset with wires linking to a mobile or cellular telephone, for example, can still cause some problems. The wires from the headset may tangle with the steering wheel or the gear-shifting stick inside the car during driving. Hence, the earphone may be abruptly removed from the user""s head, which leads to distractions that may affect road safety.
Similarly, a wireless telephone users also experiences the same type of inconveniences as a car driver when he or she is using a telephone in an office or at home. Because the users has to hold the handset with one hands, the user""s hand may get tired after a period of use. In addition, if the user needs to use both hands to perform some other tasks, he or she may have to use his or her shoulder and neck to grip the handset. After using a wireless telephone in this fashion for some time, chronic neck pain may occur.
In fight of the foregoing, there is a need to provide a communication system for telephone conversation that is capable of eliminating the inconveniences and problems found in conventional systems.
Accordingly, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a communication system for telephone such that hands-free communication for wireless, wired, mobile or cellular telephone is possible.
To achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, the invention provides an infrared communication system suitable for wireless, mobile or cellular telephones that are used inside cars or indoors. The telephone communication system includes a microphone, a transmitter and a receiver earphone. The microphone is connected via a piece of cable to a wireless, a wired, a mobile or a cellular telephone unit for receiving a first voice signal and then delivering it to the wired/wireless/mobile/cellular telephone unit. The transmitter is also connected to the wired/wireless/mobile/cellular telephone unit for receiving a second voice signal from the wired/wireless/mobile/cellular telephone unit and then converting the second voice signal into wireless signals. The receiver earphone comprises a receiver and an earphone. The receiver is used for receiving the wireless signals transmitted by the transmitter and then converting the signals into a third voice signal for the user to listen to.
The microphone of the aforementioned telephone communication system is connected by wiring to the mouthpiece circuit of the telephone. The microphone is in turn positions close to user""s mouth so that sound emitted by the user can be easily received. The transmitter is electrically connected to the telephone speaker circuit. Hence, the transmitter is able to convert the voice signal coming from the telephone into wireless signals and then broadcast them away. Through the receiver/earphone system worn on user""s head, the user is able to pick up voice from the telephone. The receiver can actually be fixed in whatever place user found to be convenient. For example, the receiver can be placed near user""s pocket, somewhere around the neck, in front of the chest, in fact any location where wireless signals can be easily picked up. Furthermore, wireless signals include both infrared wave and radio wave. Because voice signals coming from the telephone unit is picked up by the user through an earphone, privacy of conversation can be maintained. In addition, through a transmitter-receiver earphone system, hands-free telephone communication is possible. Moreover, the only changes necessary for introducing the telephone communication system of this invention is to wire a microphone to the mouthpiece circuit and to install a unidirectional wireless transmitter onto the loudspeaker. Therefore, as soon as the user wears the receiver earphone, hand-free telephone conversation is immediately available at a small cost. The telephone communication system, besides being useful for car drivers having a mobile, cellular or car telephone, can be applied to indoor wired telephone as well.
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary, and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.